Monarch-palooza or Something Like That

Last Sunday I took the kids to the North Park Nature Center (north side of Chicago) for Monarch-palooza, to see Monarchs being released for their long journey to over-winter in Mexico on the hillside of Sierra Chincua.

I guess with a name like 'Monarch-palooza' I expected they would be release dozens and dozens of butterflies, but they were releasing one every hour. However, they had a lot to teach us, so in the end I understood why it was one at a time.

First we went inside to look at all the live Monarchs in different stages of their life-cycle, and the staff explained how they take the silk and stick themselves upside down before making their chrysalis. It was great to be able to see them in their various stages to help the kids understand the process.

Common Milkweed growing in Chicago at Little Gompers

Then we went outside to see the milkweed. This is a most special plant because it is the only plant that Monarchs will lay their eggs on, so they are completely dependent on this plant for survival. The milkweed has a milky white liquid (hence the name) and it is toxic, making the Monarchs toxic and helping them avoid predators.

Milkweed plants have been eradicated from much of their native habitat due to development and farming. If you are interested in growing milkweed you can check with your local nursery or visit 'Live Monarch' to find out how to get native seeds free-paying only for postage.

Milkweed is easy to grow and native to the United States. What was really interesting was that all the insects that seem to like this plant end up with the same color scheme - orange and black.

Pointing out 6 legs to confirm Monarchs are indeed insects

Next the staff took a butterfly out of a large tent - they know the Monarchs are ready to fly and their wings are dried when they are flying around the tent. They showed us how to hold a butterfly to avoid damaging their delicate wings and how to identify male versus female (the bottom wings will have spot in the orange areas for a male, no spots for a female), and then they put a tiny sticker on the wing to help track the butterfly to that scientist can learn many important things about their migration all to make sure we continue to keep Monarchs alive and well with healthy populations.

This butterfly is a girl or female. Looking at the bottom wing.

We learned many things we didn't know: Monarchs will fly to Southern California and Florida and miss out on Mexico all together; no matter where a Monarch is, Texas, Arkansas, Illinois or Canada, once it is September they all know to head back south for the wintering grounds; Monarchs will go through 4 or 5 life cycles in one summer, migrating north, before the last generation heads back to Mexico.

Monarch-palooza inspired me. I am going to work on a butterfly and Monarch garden to make a little more habitat. I hope you can find a little space to help with Monarch habitat too.